Becoming a Saint From the Iron Armor Skill

Chapter 424: Chapter 214: Secret Skill: Concealment

Chen An was currently wearing a long silk robe, looking every bit the part of a country gentleman.

However, he had clearly not adapted to being a country gentleman; his expression and demeanor still revealed a hint of awkwardness and unease.

After all, Shen Zhiming was the lofty County Magistrate, the most respected figure in the county. Chen An, a mere mountain villager, would never have dreamed that he would one day be able to sit and chat with such an important person.

This was a sense of inferiority ingrained over decades; how could he possibly adapt in just a day or two?

Fortunately, Shen Zhiming didn’t put on any airs or act imperiously. He maintained a friendly smile and was very amiable, so Chen An wasn’t as nervous.

Seeing Chen Cheng walk into the main hall, Chen An breathed a huge, internal sigh of relief and quickly said with a smile:

"Ah Cheng, you’ve come at the perfect time. Lord Shen is here to discuss something with you.

Lord Shen, since you two have official business to discuss, this old man will take his leave."

As Chen An spoke, he bowed to Shen Zhiming again.

"Of course," Shen Zhiming said with a smile and a nod.

Chen Cheng cupped his hands in a salute, sat down beside Shen Zhiming, and couldn’t help but frown slightly when he saw the thick book Shen Zhiming was holding.

Chen Cheng’s slaying of the Tier Three Demon Beast, the Ghost-faced Mountain Demon, in Qingxi Town had undoubtedly left Shen Zhiming deeply shaken.

His attitude toward Chen Cheng had shifted from its previous politeness to one tinged with a measure of reverence.

If it had just been that, it would have been fine.

Shen Zhiming seemed to have seen something in Chen Cheng; amidst the reverence, there was even a hint of worship.

When Chen Cheng returned to Moshan City, Shen Zhiming bustled about, helping him choose this courtyard residence to settle the Old Chen Family.

This residence was very close to the County Yamen. Although Chen Cheng had spent silver coins to purchase it, it had originally been one of Shen Zhiming’s personal villas.

At first, Chen Cheng had only thought that this was Shen Zhiming being warm-hearted.

But afterward, whenever this fellow finished his official duties, he would always find some excuse to come to the Chen Family’s home, sometimes to discuss demon-slaying matters.

Most of the time, however, he wanted to teach Chen Cheng the Literary Dao Realm.

And cultivating the Literary Dao Realm naturally required reading widely; it was impossible for anyone without great wisdom.

In Shen Zhiming’s words, Chen Cheng was exceptionally talented and possessed the Holy Heart Clarity Aspect, making him a one-in-ten-thousand prodigy of great wisdom.

He hadn’t been able to see it at first because Chen Cheng was engrossed in the Martial Dao, but after Chen Cheng’s trip to Qingxi Town, the Holy Heart Clarity Aspect had become more and more obvious, almost to the point where his innate wisdom was externally manifest.

Although the power of the Literary Dao Realm was somewhat weaker, its presence was immense.

Not to mention, once one cultivated a Literary Dao Dharma Aspect, it was quite good for intimidating opponents when unleashed in a fight.

Unfortunately, Shen Zhiming said that the Literary Dao Dharma Aspect was a Water Grinding Skill that required one to read a text ten thousand times before its meaning revealed itself.

This was exactly as the saying goes: "When you have read it until you are thoroughly familiar, you will understand its meaning without needing explanation."

With Chen Cheng’s innate wisdom, if he read for five or six hours a day, he should be able to grasp the true essence of the Literary Dao Realm and condense a Literary Dao Dharma Aspect in less than three to five years.

Where would Chen Cheng find so much time? Naturally, he couldn’t be bothered to cultivate it.

But Shen Zhiming was extremely patient, even though Chen Cheng had stated clearly that he did not want to cultivate the Literary Dao Realm.

He maintained an attitude of "though Chen Cheng rejects me a thousand times, I will treat him as I did upon our first meeting," determined to guide this peerless prodigy of great wisdom onto the Supreme Dao.

"Lord Shen, could it be that you’ve come because there’s new intelligence about the demon scourge?"

To prevent Shen Zhiming from rambling on, Chen Cheng spoke first, steering the conversation toward official demon-slaying business.

"Er..." Shen Zhiming faltered for a moment. He had indeed come to persuade Chen Cheng to cultivate the Literary Dao Realm and had already prepared a whole speech.

"My father and Lord Xue Huai’an have not sent any news yet.

Qingyao and Qingshuang are also tracking the Demon Beast’s trail, and Liu Yongzhen doesn’t have any further intelligence either."

Shen Zhiming shook his head and was about to start persuading him again, but before he could open his mouth, Chen Cheng preemptively asked another question:

"Lord Shen, you mentioned before that the scoundrels from the Black Lotus Sect would likely take advantage of the demon scourge to stir up trouble. Is there any news about them?"

Hearing this, Shen Zhiming’s expression turned serious. "The Demon Suppression Department just sent word that traces of the Black Lotus Sect have been found in Xin’an County, but none have been discovered in Xinyi County or Moshan County yet."

"Oh..." Chen Cheng acknowledged, then asked, "Lord Shen, you also said before that the Black Lotus Sect villains seem to possess an Evil Technique, using Evil Qi to control deceased Bone Forger Realm Martial Artists and refine them into Demons known as Corpses.

If one encounters a Corpse, besides using Silver Phosphorus Powder to neutralize its Evil Qi, are there any other powders or Dharma Gates?"

"As far as I know, the Silver Phosphorus Powder refined by the Demon Suppression Department, which ignites on contact with fire, is the most effective powder against Corpses.

As for other Dharma Gates, I am not aware of any."

Shen Zhiming shook his head, then immediately realized something was amiss. He had already explained this matter to Chen Cheng before.

How could a person of great wisdom like Chen Cheng possibly have forgotten so quickly?

’This Lord Chen is asking about something he already knows!’ Shen Zhiming sighed to himself.

Seeing that Chen Cheng was about to speak again, he hurriedly said, "Lord Chen, I’ve brought a Secret Technique with me this time. Might you be interested?"

At these words, Chen Cheng’s eyes lit up. "What kind of Secret Technique?"

As long as it wasn’t studying the Literary Dao Realm with Shen Zhiming, Chen Cheng was interested in anything else.

Skills like Secret Techniques were deeply mysterious, and Chen Cheng was extremely interested.

"This Secret Technique is a fragmented manual passed down from Vast Peak, called the Concealment Secret Skill."

Shen Zhiming opened the thick book, took out a sheaf of yellow paper tucked inside, and handed it to Chen Cheng.

Chen Cheng took the yellow paper, unfolded it, and began to examine it carefully.

Just then, Shen Zhiming added, "This Concealment Secret Skill was something a senior from the Great Dao Sect happened upon in an Ancestor’s Cave Mansion.

The original is treasured in the Great Dao Sect’s Library Pavilion; this is just a hand-written copy.

However, both the original and the hand-written copy are merely fragments.

Trying to cultivate the Concealment Secret Skill from this fragmented Secret Manual is extremely difficult. To this day, no one in the Great Dao Sect has succeeded.

But, this Secret Technique is not entirely useless.

When I was at the Great Dao Sect, there was a legend in the Sect that if a person with innate wisdom cultivated the Literary Dao Realm to the stage of Great Success, they might be able to master this Secret Technique.

This is because the Concealment Secret Skill and the Literary Dao Dharma Aspect share a similar principle.

Furthermore, the Concealment Secret Skill’s External Incarnation Dharma Aspect is incredibly powerful, and could even be called the strongest of all Dharma Aspects..."

Shen Zhiming continued to explain in a pleasant, drawn-out manner, his objective incredibly clear: he still wanted to persuade Chen Cheng to cultivate the Literary Dao Realm with him.

Chen Cheng had long grown accustomed to his chatter, treating it as the buzzing of a mosquito as he focused his mind on studying the Concealment Secret Skill.

"The Great Dao of the world, all techniques return to a single origin, the ancestors had the Five Elements Escape Technique... burrowing into the earth... hiding in rivers... merging with metal... concealing within forests... vanishing into flames...

There were nobles who followed the Pot Master into his pot... this is called the Pot Skill...

I have comprehended a Secret Technique... to dissolve the form and transform... to enter and exit without using a door... to wrinkle the face into an old man... to take a staff and turn it into a forest...

The great Dao of concealment... an external incarnation... returns to the self..."

This Secret Manual for the Concealment Secret Skill was obscure and difficult to understand, and Chen Cheng couldn’t help but shake his head as he read.

It wasn’t until he saw the passage "an external incarnation... returns to the self..." that he suddenly felt a faint flicker of insight and gradually fell into deep thought.

[Skills: Secret Skill: Concealment (Incompleteness 63/100) (Uninitiated 1/10)]

"Whoa! A Dharma Gate like this actually exists!"

Recalling the insight in his mind, Chen Cheng was startled.

When he saw the notification on his panel, another wave of ecstasy washed over him.

This Secret Skill: Concealment was an incomplete text, but its degree of completeness was far higher than the Secret Skill of Cang.

Most importantly, Chen Cheng had a feeling that cultivating the Secret Skill: Concealment would be much easier for him than cultivating the Secret Skill of Cang.

This was because the Secret Skill: Concealment was not some legacy of the Literary Dao Realm, but a heritage of Martial Arts Cultivation Techniques. It followed the path of the Martial Dao.

Soon, Chen Cheng once again became engrossed in studying the Secret Technique, entering a state of selfless focus, free from all distractions.

Meanwhile, Shen Zhiming’s eyes had long since widened in shock.

He had achieved the initial stage of cultivating his Literary Dao Dharma Aspect and was extremely sensitive to the Power of Thought.

He clearly perceived that when Chen Cheng first began reading the Concealment Secret Skill, there was nothing unusual.

But as a faint smile appeared on Chen Cheng’s face, invisible streams of Wish Power began to gather above his head.

It gave off a feeling that was both mysterious and profound, yet clear and lucid.

This was precisely the Holy Heart Clarity Aspect that Shen Zhiming had spoken of.

Only a person of great wisdom could manifest such an aspect.

And only the Holy Heart Clarity Aspect could so easily gather Wish Power to bless oneself.

Chen Cheng was a one-in-ten-thousand prodigy, a person who possessed the ultimate innate wisdom!

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